October comes to an end

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 30, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 30, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, Oct 30, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 29, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 29, 2024

October is ending on a warm note with much above temperatures once again (the end of the month post is today as I have to work overtime tomorrow).  Most of the month featured good to great migration conditions, little rain and warmer temps overall.  I ended the month with 18 species of warblers in total in Hampshire County.  November will bring the possibility of a rare warbler showing up plus hopefully some lingering species.  The only really expected species moving forward will be Yellow rumped Warbler, which will also dwindle to few around by the end of the month.  I spent the last couple days I could bird trying to pin down locations for warblers to start off November on the right foot.

More warblers on a few more very warm days for late October

Common Yellowthroat, Amherst, MA, Oct 22, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Amherst, MA, Oct 22, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 22, 2024

Blackpoll Warbler, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, Oct 22, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 23, 2024

The last couple days have featured near record heat with highs in the upper 70's to low 80's and sunny conditions which continued the record heat we had to end the third week of October.  I have been out each morning trying to track down late warblers and had some decent luck yesterday with a total of five species including a Common Yellowthroat and a Nashville Warbler for late ones.  I had less luck today with breezy conditions making viewing a bit more of a chore and I had just two species for the day (Yellow rumped Warblers and a couple Palm Warblers).  Tomorrow looks to feature cooler temps and north winds following a cold front so I don't anticipate anything unusual for warblers.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle' and Dark eyed Junco, Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 23, 2024

I also captured what will likely be the last warbler of the year at the water feature today with a Yellow rumped Warbler.  I'll have a summary of all the warbler species at the water feature in the annual year end wrap up.

A few late warblers to end the third week of October

Nashville Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2024

Black throated Green Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 16, 2024

Common Yellowthroat, Amherst, MA, Oct 16, 2024

Tennessee Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 15, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 16, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Amherst, MA, Oct 17, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 21, 2024 

As the third week of October comes to an end on a rather warm note the diversity of warblers continue to drop with mainly just Yellow rumped Warblers around with just a smattering of other species.  The weather has been overall very pleasant with steadily warming temperatures with abundant sunshine with a near record high today in the mid 70's.  The mornings have been quite cold but the sun has increasing resulted in warmer days.  Between my time at work I have been out tracking down warblers in the hopes of finding late/lingering species and perhaps a rarity.  I have caught up with a few late warblers including a Black throated Green Warbler on the 16th and a Nashville Warbler on 19th.  I managed to track down eight species for the third week including my first Orange crowned Warbler of the fall.  

Wilson after surgery, Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 19, 2024

Wilson had to have another surgery on Saturday to get a few masses removed and he continues to recover.  We will have to wait and see if any of them are cancer...certainly hope not.  

Warblers to end the second week of the month

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 14, 2024

Common Yellowthroat, Amherst, MA, Oct 14, 2024

Nashville Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 14, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Amherst, MA, Oct 14, 2024

I ended the last day of the second week of October exploring in Amherst on a cool, damp and occasionally rainy morning looking for warblers.  I managed to track down four species in the gloom in Amherst with the vast majority being Yellow rumped Warblers.  Although far from record breaking I was happy to see that many species given the conditions.  I have not had much of a chance to bird the last few days due to work and other commitments so it was nice to be out today, even if it was less than ideal warbler weather.  The next few days continue to look cool and windy but then there should be a warm up to end the week and continue for at least a few days after that.

More late warblers for the first week of October

Northern Waterthrush, Belchertown, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Chestnut sided Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Ovenbird, Belchertown, MA, Oct 6, 2024

After finding 14 species of warblers to start October I continued to search and find a number of late species for the month when I was not working.  

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Magnolia Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Black throated Green Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Chestnut sided Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Amherst, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Northern Waterthrush, Belchertown, MA, Oct 3, 2024

Ovenbird, Belchertown, MA, Oct 3, 2024

After getting out of work on the morning of the 3rd I tried Arcadia but with little decent habitat it was rather slow.  I then headed to a spot in Amherst that was productive on the first and I had some good luck there again with a late Chestnut sided Warbler among a half dozen species.  After about an hour and half I headed to Belchertown where I had two more late species with a Northern Waterthrush and an Ovenbird.  Overall for the morning I had eleven species.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', UMASS, Amherst, MA, Oct 5, 2024

Common Yellowthroat, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Oct 5, 2024

Black and White Warbler, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Oct 5, 2024

Common Yellowthroat, Amherst, MA, Oct 5, 2024

Blackpoll Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 5, 2024

I had to work on Friday but got out to bird again on Saturday morning and I started off at UMASS where I had five species of warbler.  I then moved on to a spot in Amherst where I once again had five species of warblers.  I ended the morning with seven species of warblers and I'm sure I could have got more if I was not so exhausted from work and could visit a few other areas.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 6, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 6, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Amherst, MA, Oct 6, 2024

American Redstart, Amherst, MA, Oct 6, 2024

Common Yellowthroat, Amherst, MA, Oct 6, 2024

Ovenbird, Belchertown, MA, Oct 6, 2024

Wilson out for a walk, Belchertown, MA, Oct 6, 2024

The night of Saturday into Sunday morning was a big night of migration (the largest flight in overall numbers all fall according to birdcast).  Although the diversity was down the numbers of Yellow rumped Warblers was impressive with dozens in most spots.  I also turned up a late Ovenbird and ended the morning with just half a dozen species of warblers.  I started off the morning in Amherst and then worked my way back toward home.  Although it was a cold start in the low 40's it eventually warmed up and day featured wall to wall sunshine.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Belchertown Land Trust Trail, Belchertown, MA, Oct 7, 2024

Common Yellowthroat, Belchertown Land Trust Trail, Belchertown, MA, Oct 7, 2024

The week ended on a rainy note to start the day.  I was out before sunrise to find breezy conditions and occasional showers that became a steady rain for a few hours.  My early morning stops were not too productive at all.  Once the rain stopped I headed out again and had a bit more luck with warblers with the primary species being Yellow rumped Warblers.  I ended the day with just four species of warblers with no new ones for the month.  So far I have found 17 species of warblers for the month and the chances of turning up more species rapidly decreases as the month goes on.

14 warbler species to start off the month of October

 

Prairie Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Amherst, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Common Yellowthroat, Amherst, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Northern Parula, Amherst, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Magnolia Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Black throated Green Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Blackpoll Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Black and White Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Ovenbird, Belchertown, MA, Oct 1, 2024

Pine Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Oct 1, 2024

I was pleasantly surprised to have a fantastic start to October for warblers with a total of 14 species at my two stops this morning (I managed to get at least marginal photos of eleven of the species).  It was a surprise as the end of September had below typical diversity of warblers compared to a typical year.  I specifically headed out this morning with the intention of trying to track down as many warblers as I could.  I decided to start my morning in Amherst and despite a persistent fog I managed to find ten species, with the most unusual being two late Prairie Warblers.  I also had above typical counts for a few other species including Common Yellowthroat and Northern Parula.  After a little over two hours I headed to my second stop which was in Belchertown to look for some other species and try to get out of the fog.  Although I didn't have enough time to cover the area as much as I wanted I still got four new warbler species for the morning and the area was fog free (although a bit breezy).  It was certainly a great start to the new month for me and there are still a few more species I should be able to turn up with a bit more effort.